At Githunguri Township in Kiambu County stands the Githunguri Level 5 Hospital, which gives the rapidly growing town a striking appearance.

Launched on May 24, 2018, by former First Lady Mama Margaret Kenyatta at a cost of Sh800 million, the hospital was originally envisioned as a 280-bed Level Four facility. It was designed to serve more than 500,000 people in Githunguri and the neighbouring Lower Lari, and also to function as a cancer centre.

The national government, then under retired President Uhuru Kenyatta, contributed Sh500 million to the project, while the county, led by the former Governor Ferdinand Waititu, committed to paying the remaining Sh300 million.

However, the project encountered major challenges, resulting in delays. Six years later, the hospital remains unfinished, despite millions of taxpayers’ money being spent, and locals continue to grapple with the lack of a proper nearby healthcare facility.

Even after the former president intervened and called in the Kenya Defence Forces to assist with the project, it was left incomplete by the time he retired.

However, there is a ray of hope after the Kiambu County Government, led by  Governor Kimani Wamatangi-led placed a new tender notice for renovations, alterations, and completion works. Sources reveal that discussions are ongoing  between the two governments regarding the hospital’s equipping and operationalization.

Scope of work

The tender includes works such as the installation of ramps and balustrades, lifts, nurse call system, theatre lamps and lighting, mechanical ventilation, air-conditioning for the surgical theatres, generator sets and associated works, as well as kitchen, laundry, mortuary, and external painting.

“My intention is to ensure that any project started with the intention of assisting the public is completed and put into operation. I committed to finishing four Level Four hospitals that were started by previous administrations but had stalled, in addition to constructing two new Level Four hospitals in Karuri and Juja and initiating 26 new Level 3 hospitals,” said Wamatangi.

The Level Four facilities that had stalled are located in Lari, Githunguri, Thogoto in Kikuyu, Wangige in Kabete, and Bibirioni in Limuru. The projects are now under construction and are almost complete, except for Githunguri and Bibirioni which have been advertised afresh,” Wamatangi said.

The Githunguri project involved expanding the existing Githunguri Health Centre, which was started in 1951 and had only seen minor improvements from former Githunguri MP Njoroge Baiya, who built a maternity wing to ease the burden on women who had to travel more than 20 kilometres to Kiambu Hospital for such services.

According to the designs, the hospital will feature a modern casualty and emergency unit, outpatient services, a maternity wing, an orthopedic ward, a mental health unit, a cancer unit, and an intensive care unit among other services.

On the same day, the former First Lady also laid the foundation stone for the construction of the 200-bed Bibirioni Level 4 Hospital in Ngarariga, Limuru. The national government was to contribute Sh200 million, while the county was to provide Sh100 million.

As with the Githunguri Hospital, the Bibirioni project also stalled in 2019.

Governor Wamatangi terminated the contract with a contractor hired during the previous administration after the contractor failed to complete the project, which was originally scheduled for completion in 2020.

According to Wamatangi, the contractor continued to delay the project even after receiving payment for services in 2022.

“When I took office in 2022, I cleared all outstanding invoices, along with those of other contractors working on various stalled hospital projects, and agreed they return to site,” the county chief said.

The hospital was among the projects highlighted by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu in the 2022/2023 audit report, which revealed how public hospital projects in Kiambu had stalled for years despite consuming over Sh800 million.

Gathungu raised concerns about the status of Bibirioni, Tigoni, Lari, and Ruiru Level 4 hospitals and the Central Commodity Stores, some of which were initiated by former Governor William Kabogo in 2015.

Regarding the 200-bed Bibirioni Hospital, the Auditor General noted that the Sh285 million contract for its construction was awarded on April 9, 2018, with an expected completion date of 2020.

“Review of the contract revealed that the project was to be completed within 104 weeks. However, at the time of the audit, the project was only 70 percent complete, having taken 261 weeks—an extension of 157 weeks without approval from the Tender Evaluation Committee,” the auditor noted.

Gathungu further expressed concern that the hospital had already consumed Sh126,257,472 by the time of the audit.

Despite the contractor receiving the funds, the project had not progressed significantly, with the Kiambu County Government citing incompetency.

Additionally, when comparing the Bibirioni Hospital with other projects revived in 2022, Governor Wamatangi stated that the contractor in question showed little progress, whereas others made noticeable strides.

“While projects like Rukuma and Thogoto resumed and continued, the Bibirioni contractor remained slow,” Wamatangi said.